In recent years, the use of wireless communication systems having mobile transceivers which communicate with a hardwired network, such as a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), has become widespread. The mobile transceivers, commonly referred to as mobile terminals, may take one of several different forms. For instance, in retail stores hand-held scanning units may be used to allow for scanning inventory bar codes. In a warehouse, portable units mounted to a vehicle may be used to gather information from the warehouse floor. In a medical environment, the mobile terminal may take the form of a pen based workslate which allows medical personnel to work with full page screens.
In a typical wireless communication system, each mobile terminal communicates with a networked system via a radio or optical link in order to allow for a real time exchange of information. The mobile terminals communicate through one of several base stations interconnected to the network. The base stations allow for a wireless data communication path to be formed. Consequently, such mobile terminals significantly facilitate worker efficiency since data can be gathered, transmitted and even processed at a remote site in real time.
However, despite the aforementioned advantages associated with mobile terminals, there is a strong need for a more ergonomic mobile terminal. For example, mobile terminals are typically held in one hand and a user has to use the other hand to scroll through functions and select a function. Thus, both hands are usually occupied at one time or another when using a mobile terminal. As a result, a user is physically limited by such conventional mobile terminals since the user would have to cease interaction with the mobile terminal to free at least one hand to accomplish another task such as taking a patients temperature, writing on a piece of paper, using the telephone, etc.
In view of the aforementioned drawbacks associated with conventional mobile terminals, there is a strong need in the art for a mobile terminal which eliminates or at least reduces the need for a user to use both hands while employing a mobile terminal.